1. Field of the Invention
The present invention relates to a game apparatus which controls the game progressing rate, a game controlling method, and a recording medium.
2. Description of the Related Art
Various techniques have conventionally used in video games for adjusting the relative difficulty of games. For example, Japanese Unexamined Patent Publication No. 9-299614, a publication relating to this kind of technology, discloses a technique of adjusting the relative difficulty of a game by switching over the progressing rate of the game as a whole.
There are available, on the other hand, many kinds of games provided by video games. Some video games achieve on the display screen battles between a plurality of characters, including player characters operated by the player and enemy characters controlled by a computer. In a video game of this kind, the player character and the enemy character are caused to execute actions for attack or defense in accordance with an algorithm for controlling actions of characters contained in an operating input or in the game program. More specifically, execution of an action means execution of graphic display, audio output, and battle arithmetic processing corresponding to actions conducted by the player character or the enemy character in the game.
In such a battle scene, it is possible to achieve richer contents of the game by providing a certain limit on the thinking time of the player. In a video game, for this purpose, time is caused to lapse at a certain progressing rate during the battle period so that the state of battle between characters is varied in response to the time lapse. In such a game, for example, execution of actions of the individual characters is controlled in response to the lapse of time.
In order to set a relative difficulty of a game suitable for the skill and experience in such a video game, it suffices to variably control the progressing rate of time during the battle period. It also suffices to make contrivances for changing the progressing rate.
The present invention has an object to provide a game apparatus, a game controlling method and a recording medium thereof, permitting change of the progressing rate of time during the battle period in response to the skill and experience of the player.
To achieve the aforementioned object, the invention provides a game apparatus performing a video game in which battles are fought between characters, comprising detecting means detecting start of a battle between characters; changing means which, when start of the battle is detected by the detecting means, changes the progressing rate of time during the battle period from a progressing rate of time during a non-battle period in response to any of a plurality of pieces of rate information previously prepared for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period; and adjusting means for adjusting the executing timing of an action of a character in response to the progressing rate of time during the battle period changed by the changing means.
According to this aspect of the invention, the detecting means detects start of a battle between characters; the changing means changes, when start of the battle is detected by the detecting means, the progressing rate of time during the battle period from a progressing rate of time during a non-battle period in response to any of a plurality of pieces of rate information previously prepared for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period; and the adjusting means adjusts the executing timing of an action of a character in response to the progressing rate of time during the battle period changed by the changing means. It is therefore possible to change the progressing rate of time during the battle period from the progressing rate of time during the non-battle period and to cause execution of an action of the character at a timing in response to a change, if any, in the progressing rate of time during the battle period.
The game apparatus of the invention may have a configuration in which the game apparatus further comprises selecting means for selecting an arbitrary piece of rate information from the plurality of pieces of rate information for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period in response to an operating input made by a player.
According to this aspect of the invention, the selecting means selects an arbitrary piece of rate information from the plurality of pieces of rate information for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period in response to an operating input made by the player. The player can thus arbitrarily set a progressing rate of time during the battle period.
In these aspects of the invention, the aforementioned adjusting means may have a configuration comprising time measuring means for starting measurement of time from the starting point of a battle on the basis of the progressing rate of time during the battle period as changed by the changing means, or on the basis of the timing when an action of a first character in battle is completed; time measurement control means discontinuing measurement of time by the time measuring means for a period during which an action to be executed by a second character is specified in response to an operating input made by the player, and resuming measurement of time of the time measuring means upon the completion of the period for specification of the action of the second character; and permitting means which permits execution of an action to the first character when the time measured by the time measuring means reaches a prescribed time.
According to this aspect of the invention, the aforementioned adjusting means comprises time measuring means, time measurement control means and permitting means. The time measuring means starts measurement of time from the starting point of a battle on the basis of the progressing rate of time during the battle period as changed by the changing means, or on the basis of the timing when an action of a first character in battle is completed; the time measurement control means discontinues measurement of time by the time measuring means for a period during which an action to be executed by a second character is specified in response to an operating input made by the player, and resumes measurement of time of the time measuring means upon the completion of the period for specification of the action of the second character; and the permitting means permits execution of an action to the first character when the time measured by the time measuring means reaches a prescribed time. The player can thus delete the time of the period during which an action is specified for the second character from the time measured for permitting the first character to conduct an action.
Further in the invention, the aforementioned time measurement control means has a configuration in which the time measurement control means operates in a mode of interrupting time measurement during the period for specifying an action to the second character, or in a mode of continuing time measurement during the same period; and further comprises setting means for setting an operating mode of the time measurement means in response to an operating input made by the player.
According to this aspect of the invention, the time measurement control means operates in a mode of interrupting time measurement during the period for specifying an action to the second character, or in a mode of continuing time measurement during the same period. The setting means sets an operating mode of the time measurement means in response to an operating input made by the player. The player can therefore select and set any of the modes in response to his/her skill.
The invention provides a game control method for performing a video game in which a battle is fought between characters, comprising a detecting step of detecting start of a battle between characters; a changing step of changing, when start of the battle is detected in the detecting step, the progressing rate of time during the battle period from a progressing rate of time during a non-battle period in response to any of a plurality of pieces of rate information previously prepared for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period; and an adjusting step of adjusting the executing timing of an action of a character in response to the progressing rate of time during the battle period changed in the changing step.
The game control method further comprises a selecting step of selecting an arbitrary piece of rate information from the plurality of pieces of rate information for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period in response to an operating input made by a player.
In these aspects of the invention, the adjusting step comprises a time measuring step of starting measurement of time from the starting point of a battle on the basis of the progressing rate of time during the battle period as changed in the changing step, or on the basis of the timing when an action of a first character in battle is completed; a time measurement controlling step of discontinuing measurement of time in the time measuring step for a period during which an action to be executed by a second character is specified in response to an operating input made by the player, and resuming measurement of time of the time measuring step upon the completion of the period for specification of the action of the second character; and a permitting step of permitting execution of an action of the first character when the time measured in the time measuring step reaches a prescribed time.
In this aspect of the invention, the time measurement control step has a mode of interrupting time measurement during the period for specifying an action to the second character, and a mode of continuing time measurement during the same period; and further comprises a setting step of setting an operating mode in the time measuring step in response to an operating input made by the player.
By causing the computer to execute processing through these steps, it is possible to obtain the same effects as in the aspects of the invention of the aforementioned game apparatus. It is therefore possible to easily apply the game technology of the invention with this configuration of hardware by executing the mentioned process steps with the use of the hardware such as the computer.
The invention also provides a computer-readable recording medium recording a program for performing a video game in which a battle is fought between characters, recording a program for executing a detecting step of detecting start of a battle between characters; a changing step of changing, when start of the battle is detected in the detecting step, the progressing rate of time during the battle period from a progressing rate of time during a non-battle period in response to any of a plurality of pieces of rate information previously prepared for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period; and an adjusting step of adjusting the executing timing of an action of a character in response to the progressing rate of time during the battle period changed in the changing step.
The recording medium of the invention may have a configuration further comprising a selecting step of selecting an arbitrary piece of rate information from the plurality of pieces of rate information for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period in response to an operating input made by the player.
In this aspect of the invention, the adjusting step may have a configuration comprising a time measuring step of starting measurement of time from the starting point of a battle on the basis of the progressing rate of time during the battle period as changed in the changing step, or on the basis of the timing when an action of a first character in battle is completed; a time measurement controlling step of discontinuing measurement of time by the time measuring step for a period during which an action to be executed by a second character is specified in response to an operating input made by the player, and resuming measurement of time of the time measuring step upon the completion of the period for specification of the action of the second character; and a permitting step of permitting execution of an action of the first character when the time measured by the measuring step reaches a prescribed time.
In this aspect of the invention, the time measurement controlling step may have a configuration comprising a mode of interrupting time measurement during the period for specifying an action to the second character, and a mode of continuing time measurement during the same period; and further comprising a setting step of setting an operating mode in the time measurement controlling step in response to an operating input made by the player.
The aforementioned game apparatus of the invention can be achieved by reading in the program thus contained in the recording medium into the computer. It is therefore possible to easily distribute and sell the recording medium as a software product independent of the apparatus. By using this software product by the use of hardware such as a computer, the game technology of the invention can easily be applied with this hardware configuration.
The invention provides also provides a computer data signal contained in a carrier for causing a computer to execute a detecting step of detecting start of a battle between characters; a changing step of changing, when start of the battle is detected in the detecting step, the progressing rate of time during the battle period from a progressing rate of time during a non-battle period in response to any of a plurality of pieces of rate information previously prepared for regulating the progressing rate of time during the battle period; and an adjusting step of adjusting the executing timing of an action of a character in response to the progressing rate of time during the battle period changed in the changing step.
The aforementioned game apparatus of the invention can be achieved by reading in such a computer data signal into the computer.